Today CNN received two amazing new videos of the Northern Lights. One is a view from space, and one is a little closer to home. If you’ve never seen the lights in person then this is the next-best thing. In case you didn’t know, the Aurora Borealis is caused when a solar wind (electrically charged particles emitted by the sun) interacts with the Earth’s magnetic field. These videos make it look more like a work of art than a reaction caused by a solar wind. Have you seen the Northern Lights? Send us your stories in the comments below.

Stars from space – NASA has released an awe-inspiring time-lapse video of Earth taken from the international space station. The Expedition 30 crew captured everything from haunting Northern Lights to stunning thunderstorms over Africa. This will give you a whole new perspective on Earth. Be sure to watch those thunderstorms at :33, and see the Comet Lovejoy around 1:30.

Light show in the Midwest – This new time-lapse from the team at StormChasingVideo.com shows a particularly colorful Aurora Borealis display in Fergus Falls, Minnesota. A windmill stands silhouetted against the spectacular show. See this nighttime rainbow of pink, green, and yellow lights dance across the sky.

soundoff(41 Responses)

N.

Like others here, I would like to know where the background music is from. It's beautiful. Does anyone know?

March 20, 2013 at 2:00 pm |

Duilde

TexasWren Posted on Actually, I like it. The colors are wfendroul. I'd put it on my shelf and put things in it maybe tall bookmarks on the handle-less side, and maybe small stickers or smaller odds and ends in the other side.

September 13, 2012 at 1:34 am |

NGilbert

Shortly after 9/11 I was sitting on my front steps in Turners Falls,MA. It was late at night and it kind of scared me to see the sky like that at first considering everything that had happened on 9/11, then I realized what it was and it was breathtaking.

April 25, 2012 at 5:00 am |

hmmmm

it works

April 25, 2012 at 1:02 am |

flmaysr

In the mid 50's I was puttting my trash out for collection when I saw a weird sky. I called the local news paper and they told me it was from the Northern lights. It was very pretty and sure captured my attention.

Want to see *first-ever* timelapse photos/video from INSIDE the Aurora? Check it out here, just released/posted today: http://wp.me/p1Kli5-fI.

April 24, 2012 at 11:54 pm |

S Cain

are you going to sell me a rainbow too

April 25, 2012 at 2:24 am |

Tanya

A couple times I have had the pleasure of watching this amazing free show. a few times as child in MN. One time on the 4th of July after a thunderstorm and fireworks. Another in college in ND. The colors are always so bright and the dancing has been the best I have seen. Saw them once last year on the way home in Spokane WA. One needs to have it on their bucket list of things to see.

April 24, 2012 at 11:24 pm |

bruce

When I was a child in northern Michigan I was mesmerized for what seemed like hours by lime green flowing curtains as if a breeze was blowing silently through the windows of an empty mansion.

April 24, 2012 at 7:10 pm |

Fish

Kinda makes me think of this as earth's shields...

April 24, 2012 at 6:46 pm |

norman

hey there is full smog on our earth now so sun 'beams through smog . there are many poison northern lights reflexdom .. STill ALERT Smog among us... we need to stop drive your car.. better bus

April 24, 2012 at 5:35 pm |

whoever

I've got the Pentagon on the phone right now. They're assembling a team of top crytologists who are going to work round-the-clock until somebody figures out what the hell you just said.

April 25, 2012 at 4:29 am |

Jon

This is Bush's fault..

April 24, 2012 at 5:14 pm |

jimmie b

In the first video, from 00:18 – 00:32, does anyone recognize the geography of the land? Where is that?

Like other people who have commented, could the CNN moderator find out the name of the background music for the ISS time-lapsed photography video? Thank you.

April 24, 2012 at 4:21 pm |

amanda

Fly – Ludovico Einaudi, his or part of one of his songs. You can youtube it.

April 24, 2012 at 6:47 pm |

FCV

Amanda, thank you for your post. Not only did you solve the mystery but the rest of his music is excellent. Thanks again.

April 27, 2012 at 2:30 pm |

FCV

After not being able to identify the music as one of Eunaudi's pieces, I checked with his company and they say it is not one of his works. So the search continues....

April 28, 2012 at 5:19 pm |

Sheri

Several years ago I was fortunate enough to witness the Northern Lights in Maine. We live in a very rural area but the sky was pink and looked like it was lit up like a large urban parking lot. The lights swirled overheard and it looked like they were undulating with sheers of light flashing all over the sky. Never seen anything like it since. Isn't nature spectacular?

April 24, 2012 at 4:02 pm |

Greg

HI Sheri,
It sure is! My only experience with the northern lights was watching them from an airplane, on my way to Europe years ago. A wonderful show! Thanks for sharing your story from Maine – one of my favorite places.

April 24, 2012 at 6:30 pm |

Zanna

Thank you, CNN! The video was absolutely lovely and hypnotic. I've always wanted to see the Northern Lights in person, maybe some day. The music which accompanied the video made it so very relaxing to watch. I could watch this beauty many times. Really neat.

April 24, 2012 at 3:59 pm |

Ben

what's the music ?

April 24, 2012 at 3:55 pm |

amanda

Ludovico Einaudi is the artist I believe, I easily found this video or one similar on youtube. Many of his songs carry the same basic tune. I am not too into classical music, but I am pretty positive this is either a song of his, or a piano melody only of a part of one of his sons. Just youtube him. Fly is very close, but many of them are very close.

You even have Chocolate Rain! (The chocolate rain guy is from Minneapolis)

April 24, 2012 at 3:59 pm |

Vickie

I was gifted with an hour and a half of Northern Lights on my way to Anchorage to be with my dying father. My mother said what I described to her was nothing like the view from the ground. I felt it was a message of great comfort to me. Wow!

April 24, 2012 at 2:01 pm |

Ash

I love how the atmosphere looks like a shield barrier covering the Earth.

April 24, 2012 at 1:53 pm |

Mark

That's because it IS a shield barrier.

April 24, 2012 at 3:12 pm |

Gary

Spectacular! Anyone know what the background music is from?

April 24, 2012 at 1:49 pm |

shatet

hi cnn the northerm lights is so lovebe.

April 24, 2012 at 1:23 pm |

John Smith

This is a hypnotic message linked to HAARP and the Rockefeller family. New World Order. Ron Paul. Lyndon Larouche. Conspiracy nuts. ZzZzZz.

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